From humble beginnings to an industry titan – The journey of Guilherme Paulus

Growing up Guilherme Paulus was not as well exposed to opportunities as he is today. He came from a humble family that would not at the time afford to put him through medical school despite his will to pursue the same. Today, however the father of two can take his children anywhere they want and still not dent his pocket. Having joined the Forbes list of billionaires Guilherme Paulus is considered to be one of the wealthiest individuals in Brazil with investments spread out all over the country. His knack for business has been nurtured over the last forty years since he founded CVC at 24. This is the tour company that is currently considered the largest in Latin America. The group has also ventured into other areas and is now more of a conglomerate. Considered the “Midas of tourism” by many in the country, he has mainly invested in this lucrative sector. His knowledge of the sector and influence in it saw him elected by the president to be a member of the country’s Tourism Board. He has been a believe in value investing where he has been able to spot opportunities far into the future and capitalizing on them before they dawn on competitors. This was especially true when Guilherme Paulus started bidding for opportunities to build hotels near airports as early as 2009 which were geared towards the 2014 world cup and the 2016 summer Olympics. This is the kind of vision that saw private equity firms invest in the GJP group injecting capital of up to four hundred million dollars into this venture. This level of investment enabled GJP to grow its footprint in Brazil to astonishing levels. The groups, resorts and hotels are generating more revenues quarter on quarter as compared to the previous year and are handling approximately ninety thousand clients yearly while employing almost two thousand directly. Guilherme Paulus considers this rapid creation of employment opportunities as one of his highest achievements considering the numbers that tour operator CVC Brasil Operadora e Agencia de Viagens S.A already employs. He continues to scout for opportunities in Brazil and hopefully beyond. At 68 and serving as chairman of the board of directors at CVC Brasil Operadora e Agencia de Viagens S.A he believes this is a prime time to take more risks as the company is strong enough to handle any shocks while at the same time the Brazilian tourism industry is booming rapidly.